Never Fall for Your Fiancée
June 14, 2021
I absolutely love the fake dating trope, so to see that I got approved to read this regency-era fake fiancée story made me so excited.
Hugh Standish, Earl of Fareham, has a problem. He has created an elaborate story of a fiancée to get his mother to stop matchmaking, and now his mother is coming to visit him and he doesn't have a fiancée. Enter Minerva Merriwell, a woodcut engraver that captivates Hugh the second he meets her and is in needs of money to support herself and her two sisters. Conflict-adverse Hugh asks Minerva to pose as his fake fiancée while his mother is visiting as a business proposition.
I sped through this book, laughing at all the mishaps and hijinks that kept getting progressively more ridiculous.
Things I loved: the very important hand touch that always pops up in period dramas and showed up several times over the course of this book.
I absolutely loved the side characters, but I wish that they were a bit more fleshed out. In particular, I wish Hugh and his mother's relationship was looked at more since her painted meddling was all we saw of her until the very, very end. I'm excited to see the next books in the series, where we'll hopefully see more of the Merriwell sisters and Giles.
I did love the way Minerva and Hugh felt well matched in their stubbornness, and despite their uneven power dynamic (Hugh is an earl), it did feel like they were on equal ground whenever they conflicted.
The pacing in the novel didn't feel consistent to me - the second half seemed to speed past the first half, and the last quarter of the book in particular felt rushed. There were many threads that were very conveniently tied up very quickly, and I remember thinking when the book ended "that's it?" I expected a bit more built on their relationship, especially since they didn't seem to really know each other even by the end - especially by Hugh's own admission of covering up his own work (preferring to appear to be a carefree rake). It felt like even the relationship moves that were made were incredibly large jumps in a short period of time compared to the progress that had been built over much longer time throughout the rest of the book and didn't feel like the most logical conclusion given the rest of the novel. There were also a lot of secrets that everyone seemed to carry that were hinted at but not really explored - hopefully we see a bit more of that in the future.
This is a great book for you if you enjoy lighthearted period books that aren't too much of a stickler for regency conventions, the fake dating trope, and love strong heroines that aren't afraid to speak their mind.
A thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC.
More about Never Fall for Your Fiancée here:
Title:Never Fall for Your Fiancée
Author: Virginia Heath
The last thing Hugh Standish, Earl of Fareham, ever wants is a wife. Unfortunately for him, his mother is determined to find him one, even from across the other side of the ocean. So, Hugh invents a fake fiancée to keep his mother’s matchmaking ways at bay. But when Hugh learns his interfering mother is on a ship bound for England, he realizes his complicated, convoluted but convenient ruse is about to implode. Until he collides with a beautiful woman, who might just be the miracle he needs.
Minerva Merriwell has had to struggle to support herself and her two younger sisters ever since their feckless father abandoned them. Work as a woodcut engraver is few and far between, and the Merriwell sisters are nearly penniless. So, when Hugh asks Minerva to pose as his fiancée while his mother is visiting, she knows that while the scheme sounds ludicrous, the offer is too good to pass up.
Once Minerva and her sisters arrive at Hugh's estate, of course, nothing goes according to his meticulous plan. As hilarity and miscommunication ensue, while everyone tries to keep their tangled stories straight, Hugh and Minerva’s fake engagement starts to turn into a real romance. But can they trust each other, when their relationship started with a lie?